The present invention relates to a relay connector to be used for electrically connecting a connector to be inspected which is arranged on an inspection board for an electronic component or the like, to a measuring instrument.
In some of compact electronic devices such as a mobile phone and a digital camera, a plurality of boards are superposed on one another for the purpose of mounting many electronic circuits in a small space, and these boards are electrically connected by way of connectors which are respectively provided thereon. In order to inspect the boards and the connectors provided thereon, it has been conducted to electrically connect a measuring instrument or the like to the connectors by appropriate means. In order to inspect a whole unit of the board to be inspected and the connector to be inspected, it is desirable that the connector to be inspected is engaged with a jig-side connector to be mated, and then, they are electrically connected to the measuring instrument. However, in both of the connector to be inspected and the jig-side connector, the number of durable times for engagements and extractions is relatively small, that is, about 50 times. Therefore, the jig-side connector must be exchanged, every time when the number of time of inspections has reached the certain durable number. Provided that the jig-side connector is fixed to a jig-side board by soldering, and a number of wiring cables connected to the measuring instrument are soldered to the jig-side board, it is difficult to exchange only the jig-side connector. Therefore, the whole unit of the jig-side connector, the jig-side board, and the wiring cables must be exchanged inevitably. Consequently, there occurs such inconvenience that cost for measuring and inspection is increased.
In view of the above, the applicant of the invention has already proposed an art as disclosed in JP-A-2004-273192, and reduced the cost for the measuring and inspection, by decreasing parts to be exchanged. In this art which has been already proposed, the jig-side connector to be mated with the connector to be inspected is provided on an insulating relay board, and this insulating relay board is detachably mounted on a probe unit formed of insulating material. Probes are provided in this probe unit. Terminals of the jig-side connector are electrically connected to terminals provided on the insulating relay board, and the probes in the probe unit are brought into contact with the terminals on the insulating relay board for electrical connection. Other ends of the probes provided in the probe unit are electrically connected to a number of wiring cables to be connected to the measuring instrument by appropriate means. As the results, the connector to be inspected is electrically connected to the measuring instrument, by way of the jig-side connector, the insulating relay board, the probes, and the wiring cables. Accordingly, when the number of time of inspections has reached the certain durable number, only the jig-side connector and the insulating relay board may be exchanged, and the cost for the inspection can be reduced in proportion to decrease of the parts to be exchanged.
In the art proposed in the above described JP-A-2004-273192, it would be sufficient that only the jig-side connector and the insulating relay board are exchanged, and the cost for the inspection can be reduced, as compared with the above mentioned related art. However, this is not absolutely satisfactory. Under the circumstances, the inventors considered that the cost for the measuring and inspection can be reduced more with a structure in which the probes are directly brought into contact with the terminals of the connector to be inspected. In this structure, the jig-side connector and the insulating relay board need not be exchanged, and when the probe to be contacted is broken, only the relevant probe may be exchanged.